Kate's First Christmas
by Guarding My Castle
Summary: Kate joins the Castle Family on Christmas Eve. Will Rick's present to her make her happy or scare her away? And will Rick survive seeing Kate's present?
1. Chapter 1

**I wish I owned these people. But ABC, Marlow, Disney do. **

**So I get nothing from these guys except some great entertainment every Monday night**

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Charmed

Kate is trying to finish her paperwork so she can go over to Castle's loft for Christmas Eve. She promised him that she would be there for the traditional Christmas Eve meal and package exchange.

Of course this case was way too complicated. Lots of evidence to be cataloged. Lots of Testimony to be cataloged. Lots of photographs to be cataloged. Sometimes she wished that CSU would take fewer photographs. Sometimes she wishes they had taken more than they did. This time they took more than they needed. But they still had to be cataloged and indexed before the file could go downtown for prosecution.

She looks at her watch for the one hundredth time. But no mater how many times she looked, it didn't make the work go any faster.

She had let Ryan go early since they were going to Jenny's parents for Christmas. Esposito had some type of plans with Lanie, but he wouldn't admit that is where he was going. He just said he had a special event to be at this evening.

Kate's phone chimes. She knows who it is from. She reads the message.

"Almost finished?"

She sends the reply "Almost. Just a few more pages"

Beckett glances around the bull pin. It's totally empty. She is the only one there. But this is not really unusual. In all the Christmas's in the past she was always the only one there. She never left work on Christmas Eve. She had no reason to leave. She had no place to go. No one celebrate it with. After her mother's death, she and her father had both lost all interest in the holiday. It meant nothing to them.

But events of the last nine months have certainly changed all of that. Her new guy has taken her to places that she had only dreamed about or only went into when it was a murder scene or that she saw in magazines. He took her to his place in the Hamptons. The place she can only describe as spectacular. She felt totally inadequate when looking at this home on the ocean. She knows that she and Castle are from different worlds. That is obvious. But he has insisted that she be belongs with him in that world and that she should be with his family tonight. He told her that she is now part of the Castle family and she better hurry up and get there.

The Castle family! Huh! Almost five years since she has been involved with this man-child as his muse. Totally irritated by his little boy ways. But at the same time enchanted by his belief that there is a lot of good in the world when all she ever saw was the bad. His belief in magic. And especially his belief in Santa Claus.

Now he insists that Kate Beckett start believing in the magic that he sees. This guy has done a lot to change Beckett. But he insists that it is Kate that changed him. Not the other way around.

So she wraps up her file, puts it into an inter department envelope, places it into her out basket, and grabs her coat and bag. She looks around the empty floor once again and enters the elevator. She honestly cannot remember any Christmas Eve she that left the precinct before midnight.

On her way to Castle's loft she wonders what tricks this man has up his sleeve. He is always doing something to surprise her. The little innuendos, presents with double meanings. Gifts she did not expect. He loves surprises. Things between these two have never been easy.

When she knocks on the door, she thinks she can hear jungle bells playing inside and she can definitely smell the aroma of pine. Rick Castle opens the door wearing a Santa hat and with a jolly "HO! HO! HO!" he grabs Beckett and yells to the rest "Kate's here!"

Castles takes Kate's coat and hangs it up and drags her into the living are. A giant real pine tree is set up in the middle of the room. Fully lit and covered with ornaments. The smell of cinnamon, peppermint, pine, apples, and other spices fill the entire loft.

The evening festivities begin with a wonderful holiday meal complete with every possible Christmas season food, desserts and other sinful pleasures. Kate watches as the man she has come to love more than she could ever imagine and who has proved he loves her the same, runs around the tree gathering presents and passing them out the women. After he has placed several items in front of his mother and daughter, he comes to Kate and places a small box into her lap. It is about 3" x 3" wrapped in green paper with a small red bow.

"Kate, please wait. After you open this, I will explain"

Kate watches as Alexis opens presents with sweaters, a bracelet with matching earrings, a coffee maker for her dorm room and a new I-Pad mini. Martha opens her gifts. New opera gloves, long coat. New shoes that Castle knew his mother wanted. This is a man who seems to know all the girly things that the ladies in his home wanted or needed.

After Martha finished, the three turned to Beckett. Rick says "Kate just so you know, what you have here is not everything we have for you. This is just something I wanted to start with. So please open it and I will explain"

Kate looks at the box. It feels very light. She removes the ribbon and tears the paper off. Her mind starts to run wild. First of all are all memories of her child hood. They pass quickly. Her opening presents from her mom and dad when she was a child. The surprises that they would always provide for her. Then later as a young adult more mature presents, but still just as important and surprising. Always filling her heart with happiness.

But for the last ten plus years, this season meant nothing more than a few extra days off of work with nowhere special to be.

Now, here she is with a man she has fallen completely in love with. Sharing his family with her. Him giving her the first Christmas present she has had in over a decade.

Under the ribbon and paper is a box. On the lid is the name Tiffany. Opening the box she finds another box inside. The type box that normally contains jewelry.

Her heart starts racing. What has he done? Has it set up a situation where I have to make a decision? Where I have to answer a 5 word question? Is he is doing this in front of Martha and Alexis so I can't say no?

With her shaking hands she opens the box.

Inside is a yellow gold four leaf clover. Around the edges are diamonds. It is about one inch across. There is also a chain so this can be worn around the neck. Beckett removes it from the box. It is beautiful. She looks at the back. Engraved are the words "I Will Love You Always"

Kate Beckett is in tears. "Castle. It's beautiful! Thank you!"

Castle looks to Kate. "Do you know what this represents?"

Kate has a questioning look on her face "You always have some double meaning don't you?"

"Do you remember Jenny and Ryan's wedding?"

"Yeah"

"I told you I envied them?"

"Yeah"

"You told me that maybe the third time would be the charm?"

More tears start in Kate's eyes

"Yeah"

"I hope that some day when you're ready" he points to the present "but not before YOU are ready. You will be my charm"


	2. Chapter 2

**OK Everyone wanted a present from Beckett to Castle. It took me a few days to think about what she might get for him that would take his breath away. So here is my idea of the "Perfect Gift" from her**

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A Gift For Castle

Kate Beckett stares thru tear filled eyes at the beautiful charm that Castle has given to her. This is the very first gift he has received for Christmas since that fateful Christmas season that she lost her mother. Of course this gift is extra special because who it came from. It is also special because of what it represents. IT represents a love that has built up over time. An understanding of each other. His understanding of her unspoken feelings. His willingness to wait for her. His willingness to say "When you are ready…but not before you are ready"

Actually she feels like she has had a Christmas gift every year since she met Richard Castle. That gift was just his presence in her life. Whether he knew it or not, whether he actively tried or not. The gift that he gave her was his laughter. His childish desire was to try to make her happy. The morning kiss in the form of a cup of coffee. Along with a "Good Morning Detective" and a smile.

Even on the worst days he could usually being a smile to her lips. The lips that have now been able to become attached to his lips on many occasions.

Now this year she actually had to find a present to give to him. This was a real problem for Katherine Beckett. First, it had been over ten years since she even bought a present to give to anyone. Let alone a special someone. No, wait, Lanie would be a special someone since she is Kate's best friend. But even they had not exchanged gifts. So this gift is for a more than special someone.

Besides not having an idea of what would be an appropriate gift for anyone, she had the added problem of who the gift would be for.

Richard Castle. Good grief! What kind of a gift do you give to Richard "freaking"Castle?

The guy already has everything. Beautiful loft in the city! Gorgeous Oceanside manor in

The Hamptons.

He drives a Ferrari for Pete's sake. What do you get him? Driving Gloves?

Clothes? Well can you say? He has a great selection in clothes? There is not an item you could buy to improve on that. A tie? That would be in insult! He probably pays more for ties than you make in a week anyway.

She looked and looked. She even went on line and did a search. She went so far as to look on his web site to see if by some chance there was some hint of something. But she had no luck there either.

The only things she found online about gifts to Richard Castle came from some postings made by his many female fans.

Kate was actually embarrassed at some of the items that some women were willing to send to him in the form of supposed 'gifts'. They were pretty much suggesting that there would give themselves a gifts.

But that did give her an idea. She got his gift made and wrapped just in time to bring it to his loft this Christmas Eve. So after he had shocked her she hopes her gift to him will have the desired results.

Kate picks up a wrapped present just a little larger than a shirt box. She places it on Castle's lap and she sits back down on the chair that she had been occupying.

Castle smiles and tell Kate "you didn't have to get me anything. Just having you here is the best Christmas present I could possibly get"

"Rick, you once said the best present is the one that you said you wanted, when you thought no one was listening"

Castle looks at the box questioning

"Go ahead and open it"

Castle rips off the paper and takes the top from the box. Inside the box is his present.

His eyes spread wide, perspiration appears on his forehead and his face beams red. His heart rate escalates and his breathing increases rapidly. Looking into the box he realizes that once again a prediction that Kate had made several years ago has come true. First it was the fact that "he had no idea" what it would be like with her. And now this.

Inside the box, in a beautiful frame is an 8x10 color glossy photograph of Katherine Beckett straddling a Harley-Davison soft tail wearing skin tight leather. She was right again. He might not be able to handle it.


End file.
